By Brunel Wolf Sontia · Published June 3, 2026 · Updated June 28, 2026
Two different games
SEO optimizes for a ranked list of links a person scrolls. AEO optimizes for a synthesized answer where the AI names a few businesses and moves on. The winners of each are decided by overlapping but distinct signals.
What carries over
Technical health, structured data, and genuine authority still matter. A well-structured site with clean schema helps both a crawler ranking pages and an AI deciding who to cite.
What's new
Answer-first writing, entity clarity, and citations from sources AI models sample from (directories, reputable local media, review platforms) are disproportionately important for AEO.
The takeaway
You don't abandon SEO — you extend it. The businesses winning in 2026 show up in the ranked links and inside the AI answer.